[Tucker]

Hi All,

First post. Great site! Can’t believe I have had labs my entire life and never found it. I replied under large breed nutrition and wasn’t sure if I should have started another topic so I put it in both. Not sure of the protocol here yet 🙂

Apologies for the length… I wanted to get it all in 🙂

We just lost both of our labs last year in a one two punch within 2 months. Killed me 🙁 Floyd (my 11 1/2) Chocolate to prostrate cancer and KC (my girl 15 1/2) yellow to lack of mobility. That girl was bolted together more times and just kept on trucking. Pretty amazing… I was blessed. She may have cost me a fortune, but she was worth every penny and more. As close to a human as a dog can be 🙂 For anyone who has an older dog that is having trouble getting around I HIGHLY recommend trying acupuncture. I got two extra years of love out of her. 🙂 Now to the new…

A few months ago we started a new chapter in life and brought Tucker home. (I would put up a pic but I can’t figure out how to do it.. lol. Gorgeous White Male Lab. Great breeder, all of her dogs looked so healthy, great referrals. Then the unthinkable happened. We brought him home a few days before 8 weeks and on day two we were all on the bed ( I know… don’t even say it. There is a crate on there for when we sleep… Still want him on Daddy’s bed) I was at the top and my fiancé was at the bottom.. Tucker in the middle and he did a scoot and rolled of the bed… and began limping 🙁 I almost died. You all can only imagine! He favored his should for a few minutes and he was fine. Then two weeks later my finance was holding him, put him down and he favored for a minute and was fine. I was thinking maybe a bone bruise. Two weeks later it happened again!!! That was it… x-ray time. Our regular vet said there was a slight deformity in the round of the shoulder bone where it goes in the socket but it would it probably just go away and to keep him calm for a month or so. That doesn’t work for me. I’ve paid the price for listening to first opinions in the past and not investigating issues. I brought him to my Ortho who bolted my girl back together so many times and he gave me the real scoop…

OCD… I knew when he said come in my office it wasn’t a bone bruise. I’ve taken that walk before. 🙁 He’s old school and said monitor and if it gets bad we will fix it. He wasn’t showing signs of distress on manipulation. He said if it’s bad they yelp. I’ve researched everywhere and my brain feels like it is full of Bingo Balls right now.

Our breeder said she has never had a dog with OCD. I know nutrition and heredity are two factors, but in this case I have to believe that this is trauma related OCD and not from the others. With that in mind, I know slow growth, low calcium. Some say no carbs so grain free, others say not too much protein is bad which is what you get with grain free…

Bingo Balls :-/

Our breeder did not believe in puppy food and fed Kirkland Signature Salmon and Sweet Potato. I have a problem with Costco dog food. We got home and the vet said Iams puppy large breed was good. I think that is worse. Can’t believe I went there… I just wanted to do it all right. So here we are now.

I need the best dry food I can get considering his OCD condition in his left shoulder. I really don’t care what I spend on my bag of kibble. I just want to fix my puppy!!!

We got a harness instead of a collar so there is no unnecessary tugging, There are ramps everywhere so there is minimal impact on up a downs, and we try to control him as much as anyone could control a 4 month old lab. When the zoomies come you just have to go with the flow…lol.

Now I need to know the best dry kibble to feed him. Whatever will help as much as possible for this to heal and his bones to grow big and strong. 🙂

Side note … The vet did start him on a glucosamine pill that seems good. And then we talked to the lady at the holistic dog food store who says it may be bad because he is young and you don’t want it to take the place of his own body making it… seriously!!! like I didn’t have enough to worry about with the kibble….

Any help would be sooo greatly appreciated. I love my dogs more than people! I can’t change what happened and I have accepted that it was an accident, though preventable 🙁 Now I need to do everything I can to put things right!

Help me Doggie Food Forum… your my only hope! 🙂

Thank you everyone for all of your posts. They have been very helpful. This place is fabulous!

[Tucker]

Hi All,

First post. Great site! Can’t believe I have had labs my entire life and never found it.

Apologies for the length… I wanted to get it all in 🙂

We just lost both of our labs last year in a one two punch within 2 months. Killed me 🙁 Floyd (my 11 1/2) Chocolate to prostrate cancer and KC (my girl 15 1/2) yellow to lack of mobility. That girl was bolted together more times and just kept on trucking. Pretty amazing… I was blessed. She may have cost me a fortune, but she was worth every penny and more. As close to a human as a dog can be 🙂 For anyone who has an older dog that is having trouble getting around I HIGHLY recommend trying acupuncture. I got two extra years of love out of her. 🙂 Now to the new…

A few months ago we started a new chapter in life and brought Tucker home. (I would put up a pic but I can’t figure out how to do it.. lol. Gorgeous White Male Lab. Great breeder, all of her dogs looked so healthy, great referrals. Then the unthinkable happened. We brought him home a few days before 8 weeks and on day two we were all on the bed ( I know… don’t even say it. There is a crate on there for when we sleep… Still want him on Daddy’s bed) I was at the top and my fiancé was at the bottom.. Tucker in the middle and he did a scoot and rolled of the bed… and began limping 🙁 I almost died. You all can only imagine! He favored his should for a few minutes and he was fine. Then two weeks later my finance was holding him, put him down and he favored for a minute and was fine. I was thinking maybe a bone bruise. Two weeks later it happened again!!! That was it… x-ray time. Our regular vet said there was a slight deformity in the round of the shoulder bone where it goes in the socket but it would it probably just go away and to keep him calm for a month or so. That doesn’t work for me. I’ve paid the price for listening to first opinions in the past and not investigating issues. I brought him to my Ortho who bolted my girl back together so many times and he gave me the real scoop…

OCD… I knew when he said come in my office it wasn’t a bone bruise. I’ve taken that walk before. 🙁 He’s old school and said monitor and if it gets bad we will fix it. He wasn’t showing signs of distress on manipulation. He said if it’s bad they yelp. I’ve researched everywhere and my brain feels like it is full of Bingo Balls right now.

Our breeder said she has never had a dog with OCD. I know nutrition and heredity are two factors, but in this case I have to believe that this is trauma related OCD and not from the others. With that in mind, I know slow growth, low calcium. Some say no carbs so grain free, others say not too much protein is bad which is what you get with grain free…

Bingo Balls :-/

Our breeder did not believe in puppy food and fed Kirkland Signature Salmon and Sweet Potato. I have a problem with Costco dog food. We got home and the vet said Iams puppy large breed was good. I think that is worse. Can’t believe I went there… I just wanted to do it all right. So here we are now.

I need the best dry food I can get considering his OCD condition in his left shoulder. I really don’t care what I spend on my bag of kibble. I just want to fix my puppy!!!

We got a harness instead of a collar so there is no unnecessary tugging, There are ramps everywhere so there is minimal impact on up a downs, and we try to control him as much as anyone could control a 4 month old lab. When the zoomies come you just have to go with the flow…lol.

Now I need to know the best dry kibble to feed him. Whatever will help as much as possible for this to heal and his bones to grow big and strong. 🙂

Side note … The vet did start him on a glucosamine pill that seems good. And then we talked to the lady at the holistic dog food store who says it may be bad because he is young and you don’t want it to take the place of his own body making it… seriously!!! like I didn’t have enough to worry about with the kibble….

Any help would be sooo greatly appreciated. I love my dogs more than people! I can’t change what happened and I have accepted that it was an accident, though preventable 🙁 Now I need to do everything I can to put things right!

Help me Doggie Food Forum… your my only hope! 🙂

Thank you everyone for all of your posts. They have been very helpful. This place is fabulous!

[theBCnut]

I’m boosting this post because I know someone here has posted on this before. Maybe they will see this if it shows up top.

The only thing I know about it is my vet suggests low carb food, antioxidants, and good probiotics. I’ve read to also give freshly grated garlic and oregano capsules with meals.

[theBCnut]

If you look at the carb levels of 1 and 2 star foods you will see that the carb level in the 4 and 5 star foods is actually quite low…for kibble. Kibble has to have carbs as a binder, so it would be extremely rare and require special processing for a kibble to be truly low carb. The 5 star foods really are the top 20% as far as protein levels are concerned and usually fat goes up as protein goes up, so they should be the 20% of foods with the lowest carb level too.

A lot of us have asked for calorie info to be included in the future, so we are still hoping it will happen, but it isn’t required on the government regulated label and can change at any time, even bag to bag.

[“Blue”]

Hi, I found your site and have been reading reviews for about 1 month. Here an idea I’d like to see in all reviews, but maybe you’re saving it for Editors Choice.

Kcals. This relates to cost of keeping a dog.

And here’s a question I have. Why do you give high Carb foods 4-5 stars when a wolf’s natural diet would be very low carbs?

I haven’t seen these addressed, maybe I just haven’t found them yet as there’s a lot of info here. I really appreciate your site and look forward to the editors choice section.

[Duke The Boxer]

So a little update here.. I went ahead and purchased the B2B Open Range formula which is the red meat formula. Duke has been doing great on the food. So far his stools have been the most firm they have been since he was on nutrisource chicken and rice large breed formula. Im very happy with the ratio of 71% animal proteins and 29% fruits and plant proteins, as it is a dog food with a good amount of animal protein (not the most animal based protein but good enough). Duke absolutely loves the flavor of the dog food which i suspect has to due with all the organs in the dog food. I definitely recommend anyone looking for a high protein and low carb dry kibble to really consider B2B Open Range.
Now for the next bag of dog food?! Who knows?! So many to choose from hahaha.

[Harpers Mom]

Just an update and some advise, We found a food Harper is doing excellent on, Merrick grain free- beef and sweet potato. I still want to have a rotational diet for her so does anyone know of a kibble with similar ingredients to the Merrick? She also does well on the duck formula. The ingredients of each are posted below.

Merrick Grain free- Real Duck and Sweet Potato
Deboned Duck, Turkey Meal, Salmon Meal (source of Omega 3 fatty acids), Sweet Potato, Peas, Lamb Meal, Potato, Duck Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Pea Protein, Natural Flavor, Apples, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Minerals (Salt, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Rosemary Extract.

Merrick Grain Free- real Texas beef and sweet potato
Deboned Beef, Beef Liver, Lamb Meal, Sweet Potato, Peas, Pork Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract), Natural Flavors, Potato Protein, Potato, Deboned Buffalo, Deboned Lamb, Flaxseed, Whey Protein Concentrate, Apples, Salmon Oil, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Minerals (Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product.

[pugmomsandy]

Poor dog!

There is some skin/yeast info at this site:

http://www.nzymes.com/store/pc/index.asp

I know some folks who have used it for their dogs and it worked, and then for some dogs, it didn’t. Also, you might consider giving an immune system supplement and feeding a mod/low carb diet (less than 40% carbs). Although, for some dogs, Natural Balance LID works for ear infections. Have you tried using Zymox ear cleanser and shampoo/conditioner?

[theBCnut]

Slowly work up to 1 tablespoon, 2 tablespoons at absolute most. They don’t have issues so much with fats and carbs, so that might explain the obesity you see, not to mention that neutered older dogs also may have a slower metabolism. I think most people tend to love their dogs to death by overfeeding.

[nata78sha]

Hello. I am new here. I have a St Bernard mix (98 pounds) that will be 9 years old in the fall. I also have a 5 year old miniature schnauzer. Our dogs have been on the grain free natures domain from Costco for years (at the advice of our old vet). The vet here wants my Saint on senior food. He suggested canned food, cooked human food (and buy vitamins if I cook his food) and then dry food or mixing canned with dry food . But he suggested Science diet and said he did not like Blue Buffalo … so that has me questioning him. I know BB had a recall but I had always seen high rating for it. I could have also sworn that he said a low protein diet.. I would think it would be the opposite- less carbs.. but I am not a vet. Does the Saint need to be on a senior food , is there an all stages food that both dogs can be on? Also the schnauzer is very active, the Saint..not so much. Price does matter.. I can not afford to pay $50+ for 30 pounds of dog food when I go through 6 cups a day (current food).

[theBCnut]

My dog has had those issues with a food intolerance. I had to take him off chicken, grains, and tomato. He also was showing signs of a systemic yeast infection from his gut being upset all the time, so I had to go low carb for quite a while to starve the yeast back into balance.

[theBCnut]

It could also be an intolerance to the type of meat protein she is getting. The intolerance irritates the lining of the gut which eventually makes it permeable and the yeast that should be in the intestinal tract gets in the bloodstream. The way to get the yeast out of the blood stream is to starve it back for 8 or 9 months. That means really low carbs, preferably low glycemic carbs. Dinovite’s yeast starvation diet can be fed long term, but you might want to use locally hunted meats for it, instead of ground beef or chicken.

[DogFoodie]

Hi spotcdb,

It sounds like your dog is still having what may very well be a food intolerance. And, it’s definitely not a good idea to have your dog on Ketoconazole three days per week indefinitely. If I were you, I’d take a look at a grain free food that is lower in carbs than what you’re feeding now and that doesn’t contain any white potato – which Annamaet does. I’d even consider feeding a raw diet.

It takes time, but the body can heal and recover from systemic yeast.

[theBCnut]

My younger Border Collie used to do that as a puppy. He had IBS and food intolerances. We took him off all chicken and grains, put him on a high protein, moderate fat, low carb diet and have not seen any of the stomach symptoms again since. Try Earthborn Holisic Grain Free or Nature’s variety Instinct or even Canidae Pure. Just make sure you read the ingredients list because they all have formulas with chicken too. Good luck! Food intolerances can be a bear to work out, if that’s what it is.

[Duke The Boxer]

If Farmina does not get released on chewy in time i will definitely be going with the back 2 basics formulas. I have not decided yet though what is the next protein i want Duke to try. I have been talking to Farmina on facebook and they said the dog foods should be around the same price as fromm for their higher protein grain free formulas, and then around $55-60 for the grain inclusive formula which still has 35% protein.

[BlackandBlue]

My dog is currently eating half Back 2 Basics Pork and half Natural Balance LID GF Legume & Duck Meal. She is doing better than ever on this combo. A little background on my dog: she has bad reactions to chicken, fish, venison, lamb, soy, kelp, alfalfa, rice that include yeasty feet and ears. For the last couple of months I’ve been keeping a strict watch on her and nailed down her irritants. (I’ve made good use of all of the NB LID foods to test on her.) The NB LID Duck is so low in protein that I decided on the B2B Pork to add in. Amazing results. My dog is just a regular happy, calm dog now, not a scratching, licking and whimpering mess. I’m deciding on whether to phase out the NB Duck or not.

[theBCnut]

LOL!! You should see my own emails. I’ll sign off and hit send and then realize that it autocorrected, so my own emails make fun of my name!

RDM, I’ve been wanting to try Timberwolf. There are several of their formulas that my dog can’t have, but they look intriguing. Please let us know how it goes.

[RescueDaneMom]

I have no experience with B2B. My local independent pet store carries Timberwolf Platinum now. I bought a small bag for our pit bull to try and he seemed to like it. We’ll probably buy a big bag of the Black Forest variety in the next couple weeks. I’ll let you know how he does on it.

[Duke The Boxer]

Hahaha sorry Patty my phone autocorrects it haha. But thank you for the response. B2B looks interesting tho. I like the ingredients and how they include a lot of organs from animals. I’m trying to look for more foods with high % of animal protein. That’s why farmina, timberwolf Platinum, and B2B all look really good. Idk which to choose next!

[theBCnut]

B2B is on my short list to try. Betsy tried it when her’s were still pups and she said that after a while on it they both developed soft stools. It might be that it was a bit much for them at that point in their lives, rotationally speaking, or that there is something about it that they couldn’t handle. It has none of Micah’s no no ingredients and there aren’t that many foods that I can say that about, so I’ll try it sometime this Spring. If you try it sooner, let us know.

And if you’re going to call me Party Just, at least capitalize it, LOL!!!

• This reply was modified 11 years, 11 months ago by theBCnut.

[Duke The Boxer]

Hey party just and Great Dane mom just checking back in. Duke is doing great. 🙂 but I recently came across the brand Back to Basics and it looked like a very good brand. Their high protein line has a min of 38% protein and they are rated 5 stars from Mike. Have you guys tried this line? That question goes to anyone who had tried Back to Basics.

[theBCnut]

I totally disagree on that suggestion for protein level. Low protein means high carbs and high carbs do not drive weight loss, but they sure can drive weight gain. Look on the review side at the thread for suggested low fat foods. The foods on that list are all 4 and 5 star foods, so have a generous amount of protein, but lower levels of fat. A lot of people have reported good luck with Wellness Core Reduced Fat. I don’t give different foods for weight loss, myself. I just feed less of their regular foods, but for some it just works better to use a lower fat food.

[RescueDaneMom]

My picks would be:
Orijen Adult (38% protein)
Acana regionals (31-33% protein)
Go! Fit and Free Adult (38% protein)
Annamaet Grain Free (30% protein)
Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural (38% protein)
Horizon Legacy Adult (34% protein)
Pinnacle Peak Protein (42% protein)
Timberwolf Platinum (36% protein)

Our pit bull is currently eating the Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural with some Timberwolf (Black Forest formula with elk) mixed in. He’s doing really well on it. We bought a small bag of Timberwolf to try in case he didn’t like it. He seems to like it so we’ll buy a big bag next time.

[Duke The Boxer]

Yeah I run on the last part of the walk. And I run and play fetch with him in my yard often. I have siblings who also play with him outside. I really want to try brothers complete!

[theBCnut]

Probably! Does he get to run on your walk? Does he play fetch?

[Duke The Boxer]

Thank you very much patty. I was looking into natures logic since the brothers conplete is out of my price range. So if I walk my dog a mile or two everyday he should be ae to handle the higher fat?

[theBCnut]

I wouldn’t worry about dry matter. As long as everyone realizes that these are Guaranteed Analysis numbers, they will know what they are looking at.

Yes, I’ve heard of Farmina. It looks like it’s a really good food.

Look at the protein%. Say it’s 42%, 50% of that would be a fat level of 21%. That would have the number of calories from fat close to the same as the number of calories from protein. Personally, I feed higher fat than than, active dogs can handle it. Couch potatos may need less.

[Duke The Boxer]

Patty have you heard of farmina? I know their formula is not suitable for lbp but i like the protein % but I need your help to get the ratios of fat to protein.
http://usa.farmina.com/?q=content/product/grain-free-chicken-recipe-0

[Duke The Boxer]

I’m sorry patty I knew that I wasn’t very educated on the subject and would get corrected. Can you tell me how to get the dry matter protein. And 50% fat to protein ratio? Or how does that work. Again sorry for being such a noob.

[A.Sandy]

I feed Victor, I like it a lot. But Acana, Orijen puppy,and Taste of the wild high prairie puppy are also excellent, a bit higher in carbs but high quality feed.

Ana
pet nutrition expert/advisor
pupcatnutrition.com
@pupcatfacts

[theBCnut]

I’m guessing that your numbers are not dry matter, since they don’t add up the way dry matter figures should. I like Nature’s Variety Instinct, Brother’s Complete, and Nature’s Logic. I’m interested in Timberwolf Platinum too, though I haven’t tried it yet. I just started Canidae Pure Sky, so it’s too soon to tell how I’ll like it. BTW, none of these would be considered low fat since moderate fat is 50% of the protein level.

[Duke The Boxer]

Please share any food you have heard of or have had good results with. The more people share their experience the more everyone can benefit. 😀 so so far though duke is doing amazing on the coastal catch which also has 32% protein and i forgot to add to the list.

[Duke The Boxer]

Hey dfa family, i wanted to create a list of potential dry dog foods that you have used or have heard good things about. I tried to look and see if there was a post like this already but i couldnt find one. Seeing as Duke is turning 9 months in a couple days i should start preparing a list of all different types of proteins and brands with high protein and low fat since ive seen many overweight boxers. I do walk him almost everyday and i run around with him around my large land every day so he gets a lot of energy.

So i guess some standards have to be set for the foods on the list. Im thinking of at least 32% protein , less than 25% fat and under 20% carbs. Also im new tothis so if you have foods that doesnt necessarily meet the numbers still is a very good food list it.

So far i have found

Victor Premium GF Ultra Pro 42% protein , 22% fat, 17% carbs
http://www.midamericapetfood.com/victordogfood/ultra.html

Earthborn Primitive Natural 38% protein, 20% fat, 17.5% carbs
http://www.earthbornholisticpetfood.com/us/dog_formulas/primitive_natural/guaranteed_analysis.php

Pet Pantry Holistic Choice Salmon & Sweet Potato GF 32% protein, 14% fat, and im still trying to find the carb %
http://www.feedyourpets.com/product/TPP008.html

[RedsRock302]

Did you have any luck with this? I also have a diabetic dog and we are having problems regulating her blood sugar. We found out she was diabetic a year ago and the vet put her on the Science Diet Prescription W/D canned food ( I am not a fan of this food, but thought I would try it). Recently we are noticing that her blood sugar is still in the 400’s at around 3pm. I feed our other dog the 4health dry food, which has great reviews on this site. I need something low on fat, lower on carbs, and a decent level of protein as she is losing some weight. I am in the same boat as you in trying to decide on the best food for her.

[[email protected]]

where can I find a homemade diet on line that islow in fat, not too high in carbs and protein. Sure would appreciate any help. Karen

[rebeccaleaver]

Thank you for the reply. with my cat, I went wet with Fancy Feast. It was the lowest carb highest protein. But at the time anyway, he was 16 lbs. Big difference. I don’t think I can afford to go wet with the low carb food I have checked out. I think I need to get it down pdq because he seems to be going blind. he’s on 12 units & his blood glucose today was 447. I don’t know if alpo has alot of filler. imight be able to swing that. I’m kind of desperate at this point.

[theBCnut]

If you can afford to go all wet, that is lower carb than kibble. If you can’t then the 5 star foods are the lowest carb kibbles. There are also several places online to go to get recipes for making homemade, if you are open to going that route.

• This reply was modified 12 years ago by theBCnut.

[theBCnut]

It’s a very sad way to have to learn something, and I guess I believe it should be up to breeders to make sure that prospective puppy parents know about the possible health problems of their breed, but a lot of them don’t. They just want to make the sale.

There are plenty of dog foods that contain more normal or average amounts of fats, but when you start feeding for low carb protein and fat go up, unless you are very careful to get very lean meats. But as you said, you don’t really know if that was the problem, so it may be that no matter what you had done the results would be the same. It’s just so hard to know. You can’t second guess yourself.

[theBCnut]

Sorry, but that is bad advice. It has been shown that in dogs a high protein diet/low carb diet helps with weight loss.

In people they know that high carb diets lead to insulin spikes, which then lead to low blood sugar, which then leads to fat storage and metabolism issues.

For weight loss in dogs stick to high protein/ low fat.

[OhBichonPlease]

I recently adopted an older female Bichon Frise from the local shelter. She has been doing great and made the switch to a higher-quality kibble with no major issues. I recently finished her first bag of Wellness Core and now we are trying Dr Tim’s grain free. She has been getting Cloud Star’s sweet potato Buddy Biscuits crumbled for treats. We had an issue lately that prompted a trip to the vet… For a Halloween treat, I gave my girl a dehydrated rabbit foot from a local pet store. Their products come from a reputable company that sources and processes all of its ingredients in the US. After eating this rabbit foot [complete with fur], my girl stopped eating [and subsequently pooping] for a week straight. There was one incidence of some stuff moving through after the first night, but not really anything else. She wasn’t struggling and didn’t seem in pain. For the first few days she was a bit lethargic and wasn’t interested in toys, but after day 3 or so she seemed like her energy was back and she was drinking normally. I tried everything to get her to eat – moistened dry food, peanut butter, yogurt, warmed wet food, pumpkin, baby food, pedialyte, tuna, etc and she was barely even eating her favorite treats and would sometimes refuse her favorite human morsels outright. We were worried, so we went to the vet. Nothing obviously wrong during the physical and we didn’t want to spring for an xray because I doubted a blockage [and the vet seemed to want to see the rabbit’s foot even though I told him she chomped it up well]… So the vet recommended famotidine, the main ingredient in Pepcid. We were told to give a quarter every 12 hours for a week. Within an hour of her first dose she was eating kibble again [and she is not an enthusiastic eater, especially not for kibble]. We were so relieved – it appears our dog just has a problem with indigestion and/or heartburn. Her diet, eating habits and relieving are all back to normal now… but I find myself giving her a quarter of the acid controller [we bought the store brand] in the evening when she hasn’t eaten. It is pretty obvious that it works because she will start eating soon after that.
I am wondering if anyone else has this issue? Is it safe to give my dog the occasional Pepcid on a semi-regular basis? The acid controller we have at the moment includes the antacids calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide – are we over-supplementing her? Are those safe enough for dogs to have several times a month?
Are there some triggers or dietary changes that I may be able to implement to prevent my girl from developing heartburn in the future? Is her physiology responsible or perhaps the way she eats?
If anyone has any experience with doggie heartburn or some comments or suggestions, please respond. I’m so curious about this!

[theBCnut]

I’m saying change foods to one that is low carb and if changing foods starts messing with his stool, then have the other stuff on hand. Systemic yeast is fed by carbs in the diet, so he needs as low a carb food as you can find. I hope you are keeping ingredient lists from the foods you have tried so you can figure out what the reaction is to. I would assume you are seeing food intolerance issues.

[samgreen]

Strike 12
That was what I thought about the Compliments brand. I wonder what a high quality wet dog food brand, high in protein and fat, low in carbs, might be?

[Strike12]

Here in Ontario we can’t get most of the foods Sandy listed. Acana, Go Fit and Free, Hi Tek grain free are also foods that are higher in protein and fat and lower in carbs. You might be able to find Epigen but you’ll really have to search for it. Is the Compliments you’re talking about the Loblaws/IGA/L&M brand?

[samgreen]

I am new to this forum. My dog is a medium size shepherd x. She was diagnosed with lymphoma (gastrointestinal, biopsy done and none in intestine) She has lost weight and I am trying to give her high protein, high fat and low or no carbs. The thing is she eats Compliments canned dog food, lamb and rice. Kibbles n’ Bits do not stay down. I am waiting for Orijen Regional Red, but in the meantime, I know I can get this canned food plus Orijen Puppy kibble into her and it will stay down.
My question is I can’t find it listed in the pet food. Does that mean that the Compliments brand is so low that they don’t even talk about it?

[RescueDaneMom]

There are reviews for the dry but not canned.
/dog-food-reviews/natural-planet-organics/
/dog-food-reviews/nutrisource-pure-vita-dog-food-dry/
/dog-food-reviews/pure-vita-grain-free-dog-food/

My sister has been using the Pure Vita Grain Free for her border collie/english springer mix. Her dog likes it and has been doing well on it. I fed it once or twice. I’m not a big fan of the lower protein and high carbs.

[RescueDaneMom]

The Cane Corso is considered a large breed dog because it will grow to 80lbs or larger. You should be feeding a food that is appropriate for a large breed puppy. They need to grow slow so they don’t develop bone problems. I would suggest you go to the Diet and Heath Issues forum and read through the Large and Giant Breed Puppy Nutrition thread for more info. See here: /forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/

A member, Hound Dog Mom, took a lot of time and effort to create a list of appropriate foods for large breed puppy growth. I would look through the list and see what is available to you. You may want to choose a food that is very different to what you are currently feeding (different protein, different carbs, etc).
Here is the list: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/edit?pli=1
It starts with grain-inclusive foods, then grain-free foods, and raw foods last.

I have a Great Dane (aka German Mastiff). He has done well on Annamaet, Earthborn Holistic, The Honest Kitchen (a dehydrated food, not kibble), Primal (raw), and Stella & Chewy’s (raw). You can’t go wrong if you pick anything from the list I provided. I would get small bags to see if he likes it first. You can also buy food online at places like chewy.com or petflow.com if you can’t find what you want locally.

I hope this is helpful Good luck!

[Melissaandcrew]

I rotate through most 4-5 star foods for the dry. Currently they are eating NV limitd ingredient Duck-simply due to the lower fat content that my schnauzers can eat. I also now give everyone 50 percent of their diet in homemade raw. We also rotate 5 star canned foods and dehydrated Grandma Lucy’s(almost 600 cals per cup!)

My boys WILL loose weight on all grain free, no matter how high the calories for some reason. I account for that with the Abady, and by adding higher carbs to their portion of the raw diet. This seems to work wonders. I add things like sweet potato their bowls every other day when they are not getting the Abady.

[CJohnson]

Ok I have a dilema. I have two Italian Greyhounds that have been on Merrick dog food all their lives (one is 7 and one is 8) . They are now losing weight (one has lost 3#s and the other 2#s). For these little guys just a small weight change like that is drastic because they are all muscle; basically 3 pounds on them is equal to 30 pounds on a larger dog. No change in formula. The one they get has 400 calories per cup. I’ve been trying to find something that is higher in calories for them to help them pack on the weight a little better without having to feed them a lot. I have found Solid Gold High Protein, Low Carb, Grain and Gluten Free has 465 calories per cup.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a higher calorie, high quality food? I will NOT feed any food less than 5 stars so please do not suggest them. Only the best for my babies!!

Thanks!!

[itsabigdog]

Looking for suggestions for a large breed dry food that’s *low carbs, no grain, minimal recalls* I originally was thinking TimberWolf but decided against that after reeding their reviews & i want something thats going to be accessible when I need it. Too bad cause it seems like the perfect kibble 🙁

[AndyLynneC]

I have a 12 year-old Maltese X schnauzer. Last year, she had a mass on her liver that was luckily benign and reversible with treatment. A few weeks ago, she was supposed to go in for an operation to remove a lump just below her rib cage, but her liver enzymes were too high and the decision was made to not operate. Her vet told me that the lump is cancerous and that it may have spread to her lungs, although the spots on the x-ray of her lungs may just be an infection. My question is related to her diet: I was told that because her liver is a problem, that I shoud restrict her protein intake and up her fat and carb intake, but when I researched feeding a dog with cancer, I was told to cut carbs as much as possible and to feed lots of protein. Which diet should I choose? I don’t want to aggravate any issues but I want to give her the best nutrition possible to give her as long and happy a life as possible.